"Damn it! Why is this so troublesome? We had so many people attack together, and it still took this long to deal with him."
"He’s definitely not some wandering cultivator who couldn’t survive in the Gu world. He must have a significant background," said Shi Kun with a gloomy face. His body, covered in stone armor, now had cracks from which blood seeped. It was clear he had sustained some injuries during the battle.
Lei Shun, with a grim expression, added, "Long Dan, your foresight was spot on. Thankfully, you planned for the worst and brought five geniuses from the Demonic Talent List. Otherwise, we would’ve been in big trouble."
"If it wasn’t for us, especially Long Xuan, it wouldn’t have mattered how many Gu cultivators we brought at the Marrow Cleansing stage. They’d all be dead. That guy’s abilities are truly bizarre."
Finally, Long Dan let out a long sigh of relief. He knew that Qin Tian's last words before dying were most likely a trap, meant to lure him in with the temptation of the Heaven-Mending Fruit, which could enhance one’s potential. No one could resist such an offer.
Luckily, he had anticipated that the trap would be laid by this mysterious national master. By preparing ten times more than necessary, he had finally broken through Qin Tian's contingency plans with overwhelming force.
Otherwise, even if he had brought just a few fewer people, the consequences would’ve been unimaginable.
However, as he looked around at the number of people left with a smile, his heart quickly sank.
They had started with thirty-six people, but now only twenty-four remained. Attacking the palace of a mere mortal nation had resulted in such heavy losses. It was important to remember that everyone he brought was a renowned genius from the Western Lands, each invincible in their respective stages and capable of fighting multiple opponents.
"Why are there so few of you? Where are the others? You lost so many people just attacking the Imperial Garden?" Long Dan asked, his face darkening as he looked toward the group that had come from the Imperial Garden.
"Sigh! Don’t mention it! Those Four Vajra Guards weren’t some wandering cultivators who couldn’t survive in the Gu world. Their strength wasn’t weak; it was outrageously strong."
"Each of them took at least one of our people with them when they made their last stand," one person in the group said with a bitter smile.
Despite their heavy losses, everyone was not mourning. In fact, they were smiling with excitement.
That’s because the most thrilling part, dividing the treasures, was about to begin.
The deaths of others didn’t concern them. In fact, the more people died, the better. Fewer people meant more treasures to divide. They secretly hoped more had died.
Only Long Xuan frowned slightly, his expression troubled.
Li Laodao had predicted that if it hadn’t been for him, everyone who participated in this mission would have died.
What exactly was the danger that could wipe out everyone?
Was it really that powerful National Master?
Long Xuan fell into deep thought, feeling that this matter wasn’t as simple as it seemed.
Although the National Master was indeed strong, could he really kill everyone?
Long Dan, after all, had the complete version of the Evil Dragon Emperor's Eye, which could see through void Gu. Could this National Master really take Long Dan’s life?
In Li Laodao’s premonition, the crisis that would kill everyone certainly included Long Dan.
What kind of danger could there have been that even Long Dan would die?
Although the National Master was powerful, he absolutely didn’t have the ability to kill Long Dan.
Long Xuan’s heart sank, and his nerves tightened.
At that moment, the Gu cultivators had already rushed into the Imperial Garden to divide the treasures, leaving him no time to think. He had no choice but to follow them.
Unable to figure it out, he decided not to think about it for now. He needed to get the treasures first. After all, Li Laodao had predicted that he wouldn’t die, so no matter what danger lay ahead, he would face it as it came.
---
Unbeknownst to the group, at that very moment, on the roof of the small hut where the Sou Gu was stored, Bai Youran was clutching his bleeding abdomen, his face pale as a sheet, his eyes dull and lifeless.
"Heh... My dantian has been dug out. I’m now a cripple. What’s the point of living?" Bai Youran let out a bitter laugh, his eyes filled with despair.
Suddenly, his gaze turned fierce as he looked toward the direction of the Imperial Garden, and he snarled, "I’m already completely crippled, yet you all get to divide the Heaven-Mending Fruits and soar to new heights? I can’t stand it!"
Besides, the arrangement was reasonable and appropriate. It wasn’t the time to waste on unnecessary disputes, so everyone else nodded in agreement as well.
Without further delay, they divided the Heaven Mending Tree as quickly as possible.
Each person received one Heaven-Mending Fruit on the spot, and everyone was beaming with joy.
The rest of the tree was also divided into four parts, which were then placed into the storage bags of the four prodigies.
Even the high-grade spirit soil in which the Heaven Mending Tree was planted was divided equally into four portions and quickly distributed.
However, just as everyone was smiling from ear to ear, an unexpected event occurred. A deafening explosion suddenly rang out from the distance, followed by a burst of flames in a familiar location.
Everyone was stunned.
"Huh? What just happened?"
"Where did that explosion come from? It was so loud!"
"That direction... looks a bit familiar?"
Everyone was confused.
Long Dan’s face suddenly turned pale as he looked toward the explosion, mouth agape, and cried out, "Damn it! That’s my Sou Gu hut! I've lost connection with the Sou Gu!"
"That place was protected by a formation! Who could have the power to break through it?"
Shi Kun’s expression froze, and then he suddenly flew into a rage, his face contorting as he roared, "It’s Bai Youran! Only our people can enter that place, and he’s the only one who isn’t here right now."
"What the hell did he do!" His face turned dark.
"Not good!" Li Laodao, while stroking his beard, pulled out a clump of it in frustration.
"This Bai Youran, did he really blow up the Sou Gu hut? Damn him!" Lei Shun cursed furiously and rushed towards the explosion like a madman.
The others went berserk too, and they all charged in the same direction.
They had every reason to panic. Ever since the Great Yin Dynasty crazily detonated a Realm Pearl, all teleportation formation and Sou Gu houses across the Western Lands and its neighboring areas had been deactivated.
Only Long Dan’s Sou Gu, which had broken past its limits, could still function normally.
If anything happened to that Sou Gu, they would be stranded, unable to return, trapped in this distant land.
They would have to face 200,000 Imperial Guards and 10,000 Gu cultivators and body refiners outside.
The terrifying thought of what could happen next drained the color from everyone’s faces, and despair began to fill their eyes.
When they arrived at the scene, they saw nothing left of the roof—the entire house had been blown to pieces, and the Sou Gu hut had vanished without a trace.
Everyone’s eyes were bloodshot, and they were utterly crazed with rage.
“Pfft!” Long Dan spat out a mouthful of blood and staggered several steps backward.
As he gazed at the 200,000 Imperial Guards relentlessly attacking the Five Ghosts Mountain Shifting Formation in the distance, despair filled his eyes.
He understood what awaited them.
A dead end. They were now staring at a dead end.
Things had reached the worst possible outcome, and unless a miracle occurred, most of them wouldn’t survive the day.
“Bai Youran! Even if you die, you’ve dragged us all down to hell with you. You’re ruthless!”
Long Dan clenched his fists and cursed at the sky.